Tales From The Organ Trade

Tales From The Organ Trade

(Canada, 2013)
Director: Ric Esther Bienstock
Run time: 82 minutes

This incredibly gripping doc has nothing to do with pipe organs—but everything to do with the harrowing global phenomenon of trafficking in body parts. Ok, so now you’re thinking, why do I want to see this? Well, consider that David Cronenberg narrates. If ever a director understood the complexities of the corporeal self then it was he. Consider that the film offers us a much nuanced portrait of the social nexus of the trade—the arguably well-meaning surgeons, the Asian poor who are needy and willing to donate, the North American patients who endure the torture of long waiting lists, the almost indifferent public and the conservative medical establishment. This is such a terrific piece of filmmaking, shrewdly setting before us all the possible points of view—without judgment—that you should mark it on your calendar. Prepare to think for yourself. That doesn’t happen every day.

Director Ric Esther Bienstock will be in St. John’s for the duration of the Festival and available for interviews. She has won numerous prestigious awards for her films, including an Emmy Award for Outstanding Investigative Journalism, two Geminis, a Genie, a British Broadcast Award, a Distinguished Documentary Achievement Award from the International Documentary Association, and two Hot Docs Awards. She was also nominated for a BAFTA in the UK.